“College was once seen as steak while career and technical education was seen as hamburger. Today, college is still steak but CTE has become lobster. In the ideal K-12 school setting, all students would be engaged in high quality surf and turf!” – Michael Armbruster, screenwriter
February is Career and Technical Education Month which is an annual public awareness campaign to celebrate the value of CTE and the achievements and accomplishments of CTE programs across the country.
Career and technical education in Michigan prepares students at the secondary and postsecondary levels to have the academic, technical, and work-behavior skills to enter, compete, and advance in education and throughout their careers.
CTE offers a diverse delivery system that provides students with leadership opportunities in a variety of career fields, allowing for the rigorous and relevant application of workplace skills while incorporating reading, writing, and mathematics.
Through CTE classes, students can earn college credit, industry certification, and licenses in high-wage, high-skill, and in-demand fields, as aligned with Michigan’s strategic education plan to expand secondary learning opportunities for all students and increase the percentage of adults with a post-secondary credential.
CTE provides students with work-based learning experiences to provide Michigan with a highly-skilled, sustainable workforce, which will help achieve the state’s goal of reaching 60 percent postsecondary educational attainment rate by 2030.
In conjunction with CTE Month, Governor Gretchen Whitmer joined with Republican and Democratic lawmakers to recently launch the $30 million Michigan Reconnect program, which is the largest effort in state history to ensure that more than 4.1 million Michiganders, who are 25 years of age or older and do not already have a college degree, will have an opportunity to earn a tuition-free associate degree or skills certificate.
Michigan Reconnect will pay the cost of tuition for eligible adults who want to pursue an associate degree or skills certificate at their in-district community college. The program also offers skills scholarships to help cover the cost of tuition through more than 70 private training schools with 120 programs that offer certificates in high-demand careers in industries such as manufacturing, construction, information technology, healthcare, or business management.
Reconnect scholarships are accepted by all Michigan community colleges and are even available to eligible adults who are already enrolled in their local community college. The program pays the remaining balance of tuition and mandatory fees after other state and federal financial aid have been applied. For those who choose to attend an out-of-district community college, Reconnect will pay the in-district portion of tuition.
Michigan employers’ ability to find highly skilled and capable employees is more difficult than ever and is cited as a top concern in the most recent Michigan Future Business Index report. Michigan Reconnect will help address the dual challenges of the state’s widening talent gap and aging workforce.
As of 2019, only 41 percent of Michigan’s working-age residents has an associate degree or higher, placing Michigan at 31st in the nation. The average age of Michigan’s 365,232 residents currently enrolled at a community college is 25.7 years old, and more than 36 percent are 25 or older, according to the Michigan Community College Association.
Michiganders without a college degree or training credential often face economic challenges. A 2020 analysis by the American Association of Community Colleges reports the median earnings of full-time employees with a high school degree is $40,510 annually, while those with an associate degree make $50,079 per year, based upon U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.
During this month, the Michigan Works! Association joins with the Michigan Department of Education, the Michigan Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity, and the Michigan Association for Career and Technical Education to encourage youths and adults in Michigan to be ambassadors for career and technical education and to send the message that Michigan career and technical education students are prepared for the 21st century high-wage, high-skilled, and in-demand jobs, a key component in making Michigan a Top 10 education state.
Luann Dunsford, CEO, Michigan Works! Association